Trauma-informed care is the consolidation of knowledge, skills, and empathy for clients that has the power to change lives.” Treatment aimed simply at stopping sexually abusive behavior without considering past experiences and future well-being of the client may result in less effective outcomes.
Full Answer
Trauma-Informed Care
Learn how trauma-informed care can enhance the effectiveness of the treatment of people who have sexually abused.
Trauma-Informed Care
Learn how trauma-informed care can enhance the effectiveness of the treatment of people who have sexually abused.
Key points
Trauma-informed care (TIC) is based on the idea that most people have experienced trauma and that it needs to be considered when receiving care.
The trauma-addiction connection
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Association (SAMHSA) defines trauma as events or experiences that create long-lasting adverse effects for people. Trauma can occur because of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, war or natural disasters, and many other reasons. All types of trauma increase your risk of substance use disorder (SUD).
How trauma-informed care can help
At the addiction treatment center where I work, around 65 percent of the women we treat have experienced some form of trauma during their lives. For our male patients, that number is lower, but still significant at around 50 percent.
Calming the patient
Patients with SUD who are experiencing trauma symptoms often come into treatment with an internal fire alarm going off all day long. They have trouble relaxing. They have trouble trusting. They don’t sleep well. And they frequently experience panic attacks and nightmares.
In a calmer state, therapy becomes possible
TIC has done so much to transform and inform addiction treatment, and patients with SUD are responding well to it. In the TIC environment, patients can feel confident that they:
EMDR for trauma treatment
At our treatment center and others, a therapy called EMDR is showing very positive results. EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, and it’s a type of psychotherapy provided by a trained professional usually over six to eight sessions.